Mumbai: Tata Steel International (formerly Corus) have been promoting the benefits of using structural steel vs concrete in residential and commercial structures in recent years. With the ever changing city skylines, new methods of sustainable construction are being considered and the benefits of using steel over concrete are being discussed.

Steel-framed construction has been shown to provide sustainable buildings not only in embodied energy calculations but crucially in creating high-quality, long-lasting buildings. Such buildings, with their flexible layouts, have a long useful life so that they are future-proofed and do not need to be demolished with a change of use. When they do reach the end of their life, 98% of the steel is recycled or reused, making steel the obvious choice for multi-storey, ‘greener’ buildings.

Last month, Tata Steel international organised a conference on steel framed construction. The conference, held in Mumbai, included an expert panel discussion with leading Architects, Engineers and Steel Fabricators to review the opportunities and benefits of steel construction. The panel, comprising Mr Gokaran, Raja Aedri Architects; Mr Kamal Hadkar, MD Sterling Engineering Design Consultancy Services; Mr. Srinidhi Anantharaman, MD - Geodesic Techniques Pvt. Ltd and Mr. K. Sarvanan, GM, India – Eversendai Construction Pvt. Ltd, addressed a crowd of 130 people and discussed a wide variety of topics, including speed, sustainability, efficiency, costs and issues that are faced while laying out at site with relevant case studies that originally addressed the same issues, but were over come through design technology. Tata Steel International have supplied the Indian construction sector with knowledge and advice as well as ComFlor composite decking, hollow sections, structural sections and plates into projects such as ICICI Bank HQ Hyderabad; Sunshine Tower, Mumbai which is the tallest steel frame commercial building in India ; Eicher Corporate Park, Gurgaon, which is the world architecture award winner, Mumbai International Airport , T2 terminal ; Cidco Exhibition Centre , Navi Mumbai, Thyagraj Stadium, New Delhi, which is india’s first eco friendly stadium that was used for the Commonwealth Games 2010 ; Grand Palladium, Mumbai , with is a perfect example of a modern day unique asymmetric steel architecture and the MMRDA Office Building, Mumbai

With the rise in environmental awareness and adoption of schemes such as LEED rating and BREEAM, clients are becoming more demanding and are aware that this can have a bearing on the value of their investment. The steel industry recognises this and is leading the way in refining production methods and improving products and design methods to ensure that steel maintains its credentials as the material of choice for sustainable construction.